Frankenstein Romanticism Essay

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The period of Romanticism shows its influence and new ways of writing in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein through themes of spirituality and oneness with nature, while its gloomy and scary plot line earns it a place in the world of gothic literature. This work captures the imagination and causes it to be used unlike any piece of literature written in the era preceding the Romantic Era had captured it. The capturing of the imagination and the dark, gothic elements of the story provide the reader with an eerie tale. The Romantic Era in literature marked a large turning point in the path that previous authors, poets, and artists alike had taken. They had before written from more secular viewpoints, focusing on the material functions of the universe…show more content…
In the novel, both Victor and The Creature have these aspirations, and further categorize Frankenstein as a romantic novel. Victor fights to dissipate scientific boundaries by creating the monster, and in doing so he achieves a level of universal power, having the power to give life. The Creature searches for a spiritual connection to nature and to other living things that he encounters. The Creature attempts to connect with these beings, but is rejected numerous times. This contributes to the development of a more gothic monster that is found as the story progresses. Nature, a key indicator of romantic literature, has a large influence on the overall mood of various characters in the novel. Saddened after events such as the deaths of William and Justine, Victor heads for the mountains to regain his joy. “It was during an access of this kind that I suddenly left my home, and bending my steps towards the near Alpine valleys, sought in the magnificence, the eternity of such scenes, to forget myself and my ephemeral, because human, sorrows.”(Shelley 75-76). The mood is cold and gloomy during a brutal winter that the monster endures, after which it is joyful and warm when spring comes

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